I Believe in You

Bounce Back

My mom passed away on June sixth and we laid her to rest on June tenth and my stubborn ass was back to work on the twelfth. My mom would have expected nothing less. Even now three and a half months later I felt like I was walking around with this hole in my heart where her memory lived.
"Do we really have to do this?" He muttered snuggling closer to me pulling me from my thoughts.
"You know we do." I sighed turning in his arms to face him.
"Who do we have?" I asked pressing my forehead against his bare collarbone.
After Dr. Bell complained about Conrad and I being paired together and subsequently engaged the hospital chose to randomize the new interns for their pairings as opposed to the first come first serve style they'd done with us.
Claire had drawn the line when Bell suggested Conrad and I be separated and paired with other doctor's.
"Uh... Dr. Devon Pravesh and Dr. Christina Hill." He recalled.
"I'm sure it'll be fine. Come shower with me." I smiled at him pulling myself out of bed.
"Now, you're speaking my language." He said following me into our bathroom.
Roughly two hours later I pulled into the hospital's parking lot.
"This'll go well if you let it go well." I reminded him.
"I know, Meghan." He rolled his eyes playfully.
"Where are we meeting them?" I asked as we walked hand in hand into the hospital.
"Physical therapy." He answered pulling me gently towards the sleeping quarters.
We changed into our Chastain Park Memorial scrubs before heading out to the physical therapy wing.
I sighed as we came to a stop watching all of the female patients fawn over my fiance.
"Hey." Conrad said gently sensing my anxiety.
"I'm yours."
He reached over and took my hand fiddling with my engagement ring.
'Oh yeah?" I teased.
He pulled me towards him and kissed me.
"For all the world to see, I'm yours." He smiled then kissed my head.
"I'm not normally the jealous type." I sighed leaning into him.
"I get it. I don't like seeing other men give you attention either." He conceded pulling gently away from me.
"Have you heard anything back from the private investigators you passed your mom's file to?" He asked quietly.
I shook my head.
"Not yet. They should be here any minute."
"Hey, man. Do you know where we can find Dr. Conrad Hawkins or Dr. Meghan Bishop?" A man tapped Conrad's arm.
Conrad looked down at where he touched him then up at the man. Darker skin, black hair, brown eyes standing next to a tan woman with brown hair and eyes.
"Namaste. You found us." He said glancing at me.
"Take off that tie, you're not in Harvard anymore. What are you into? White, black, brown? Men?" He teased.
"I don't understand what you..."
"Oh... uh... I don't understand..." He mocked.
"Conrad." I sighed.
"Were you affirmative action at Harvard?"
Devon looked at him incredulously.
"I read your file, bro. Yale then Harvard. Let's go." He lead the way down the hallway.
"Come on." I smiled at Christina.
"Is he always like this?" She asked.
"He can be a little intense, yes." I laughed.
"Step one score two sixty seven. I got two eighty by the way and Meg got a perfect three hundred. Top of your class, followed all the rules, and you both think that puts you at an advantage. It doesn't. It just means you have more to unlearn than the people who weren't paying attention." He spun around to face them.
"You're all ready to play doctor, huh? Got your lab coat and your stethoscope and your pen light."
I smiled and shook my head as Devon and Christina started chuckling.
"No, no, no. It's not like that. We're not laughing together." He shook his head.
"Everything you thought you knew about medicine is wrong. All the rules you followed, we'll break. I have one rule. Covers everything. I'm never wrong. You do whatever the hell I tell you. No questions asked." Conrad stated clearly and mildly aggressively.
"Do you want me to speak now?" Devon shot back at him.
"That's a question."
Devon huffed at Conrad and started to walk away.
I looked at Christina and motioned for her to come stand with me.
"No, no, no, no. Don't do that. Don't do that. Eyes on me. My last resident had an attitude too, and you know where he is now? He's teaching eighth grade biology. I cut him. Do you know what that means? It means I can end your career."
He snapped his fingers.
"Just like that. Remove you from this residency at any time for any reason and if I do that, no other residency will take you. All you'll have left from that fancy Harvard medical school degree is a mountain of debt. Now, let's meet your first patient."
"Why is he so focused on Devon?" Christina asked me as we followed behind them.
"Conrad likes a challenge." I answered as we came to the doorway Conrad and Devon walked into.
"Just wait here with me."
"This is Dobroslav. He's Croatian, doesn't speak a word of English. He has severe cavda equina syndrome. What are we worried about?" Conrad asked Devon.
"Early paralysis."
"Hey man." Conrad greeted the patient.
"What's the first sign of paralysis?" He returned his attention to Devon.
"Anal tone."
"Stick your finger up his ass."
I doubled over laughing and walked away from the room with Christina following behind me.
"Is he serious?" She asked.
"He is. It's the fastest way to test for early paralysis and possibly being able to reverse it." I answered.
"Come on. Let's see our first patient." I lead her to a different room.
She looked terrified.
"Don't worry. I'm not going to have you stick your fingers anywhere." I chuckled.
"Hi, Laurie. This is Dr. Christina Hill and she'll be helping me take care of you today." I told the older woman walking into the room.
"Where's Conrad?" She asked looking at my hand where our engagement ring still sat.
"It's new intern day so we decided to divide and conquer." I explained.
"Ah, fair enough. As long as everything is okay." She smiled at me.
"Everything's fine. How are you doing today?" I asked checking her chart.
"Not too bad." She lied.
"Ms. Rounds has osteonecrosis in her left leg after a car accident last year." I informed Christina.
"I'm telling you it doesn't hurt." Laurie said smirking at me.
"I told you that's normal. We still have to have the knee replacement surgery." I reminded her.
"Her surgery is this afternoon. Conrad will eventually give you a bigger challenge but for today I'd like you to help me keep an eye on Ms. Rounds and a few of my other patients awaiting surgery." I told her.
She nodded and I walked out to find Conrad.
"Excuse me, nurse? Devon." He reached out to shake my hand.
"Dr. Meghan Bishop." I answered shaking his hand.
"Oh my gosh. I'm so sorry." He looked at me.
"Conrad tends to dominate those first meetings." I chuckled.
"Please help me." His eyes begged me.
"He can be intense but he's a good man and a great doctor. Watch and learn." I told him as Conrad slammed the conference room door.
"Reign in your dog, Bishop!" Dr. Randolph Bell called after him.
I watched Conrad turn back and rushed forward to touch his skin.
"That's what he wants, Conrad. Come with me." I whispered gently pulling on him.
Conrad followed me into the sleeping quarters.
"He can't keep getting away with this." He exclaimed sitting on the bed in front of me.
"You can't let him get to you like this. HODAD isn't even close to worth it." I sighed sitting next to him.
"He's killing people, Meghan. And he's covering it up."
"I know, Conrad. I know." I pulled him to me so he could lay his head on my shoulder.
I kissed his head gently.
"What do we do?" He asked.
"The only thing we can do. Our jobs. Save the patients we can." I answered sadly.
He sighed.
"Try to rest?" I asked.
"No. You're first today." He reminded me.
"I'm not the one fighting with HODAD."
He chuckled.
"An appendectomy shouldn't result in a death. They're blaming an undisclosed heart condition."
"We'll get him, Conrad. We will. Have some faith."
"I have faith in you." He smiled at me.
"I know you do. I believe in you." I kissed him gently.
"I'll behave. Get some rest." He urged.
I watched him walk out of the room before laying down.